Tennant (NYSE:TNC) Trading Down 6.1% Following Weak Earnings

Tennant (NYSE:TNC) shares dropped 6.1% on Thursday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The company traded as low as $67.79 and last traded at $67.74. Approximately 31,859 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 77% from the average daily volume of 140,247 shares. The stock had previously closed at $72.16.

The industrial products company reported $1.12 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.38 by ($0.26). The firm had revenue of $290.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $296.63 million. Tennant had a net margin of 6.51% and a return on equity of 19.98%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.49 earnings per share.

Tennant Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be given a dividend of $0.295 per share. This represents a $1.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.65%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. Tennant’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.94%.

Tennant announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, February 13th that allows the company to repurchase 2,000,000 outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the industrial products company to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Tennant from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th.

Insider Activity at Tennant

In related news, SVP Barb Balinski sold 1,717 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.42, for a total transaction of $148,383.14. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,829 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,022,262.18. The trade was a 12.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Richard H. Zay sold 7,053 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.58, for a total transaction of $617,701.74. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 25,770 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,256,936.60. This represents a 21.49 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.60% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Tennant

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Amundi lifted its position in shares of Tennant by 190.4% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 9,666 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $773,000 after buying an additional 6,338 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its stake in Tennant by 222.8% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 40,151 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,857,000 after acquiring an additional 27,712 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Tennant by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,394,271 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $195,205,000 after purchasing an additional 12,422 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in Tennant by 93.1% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 48,647 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,672,000 after purchasing an additional 23,460 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in Tennant by 1.3% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 12,908 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,213,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.33% of the company’s stock.

Tennant Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $1.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.33 and a beta of 0.97. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $77.56 and its 200 day simple moving average is $83.21. The company has a quick ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 1.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Tennant Company Profile

Tennant Company, together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and markets floor cleaning equipment in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. The company offers a suite of products, including floor maintenance and cleaning equipment, detergent-free and other sustainable cleaning technologies, aftermarket parts and consumables, equipment maintenance and repair services, and asset management solutions.